Prosecutor Julyan Stephens said a police investigation concluded there was no evidence of speeding or mechanical failure involved in the collision.

The defendant was said to have told police during his initial interview that the other vehicle may have been partly to blame for the accident, however that statement was later discounted by the police.

Shearing, 33, of Hayes Close, Canford Bottom, Wimborne, pleaded guilty to causing the death of Robert Henry Newton at Buckland St Mary by driving a Nissan Interstar van on the A303 without due care and attention.